Disgrace and Revenge
by NekoVampireNinja
Summary: A disgraced LEP commander wants revenge, but with a bounty on their heads, how can the fairy heroes stop him. And when a Mud Boy's secrets are revealed, the mission goes down hill. Some of the secrets will harm the mission, and none of them will be liked.
1. Glitch

Disgrace Revenge

**Disgrace Revenge?**

**Yea, sucky title. If anyone can think of a better, non clichéd one, call me. Metaphorically. **

**Characters: Goodies: Holly, Arty, Butler, Foaly, etc. Baddies: Sool, maybe Koboi, etc.**

**Set sometime after The time paradox, but don't worry, little, if any spoilers. **

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Artemis sat at his computer desk, musing on whether or not to hack into the Interpol mainframe. So nothing unusual there. Although he had decided to stop his criminal adventures – except the ones that involved stealing from thieves – he had never resolved to stay out of restricted files. Besides, he wouldn't touch anything.

His decision was made up for him when Butler knocked on his door, entering without a reply.

"Artemis," Rumbled Butler. "The twins want to know where their parents are. What should I tell them?"

They stood/sat in silence for a few seconds, before Artemis replied "certainly not that they have taken the week off to visit Paris, Butler. We can't tell them the truth, you know what they'll be like; 'why didn't they take us…'. Have Juliet take them down to the Lodge for a week until Mother and Father get back."

Butler nodded. "Good idea. I'll get on it." He turned to the door, but stopped with his hand on the handle. "Artemis…"

Internaly, Artemis groaned. "Yes?" He replied wearily, knowing what was coming.

"Have you taken it?" The tone of his voice made the question sound like he knew it was a 'no'.

Artemis sighed. "No, I haven't."

"Do it." Stated Butler, giving his charge a rare order. He left the room, shutting the door with a snap.

From the desk, Artemis sighed, knuckling his eyes. He was getting tired earlier and earlier these days. He stood, leaving the study and returning to his room. Once inside he shut the door and reached for a small, black case. Inside were four vials and a syringe. Sighing again, Artemis injected some of the fluid into his arm.

Minutes later he was asleep.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

At exactly the same time, Holly Short was sitting in the Council Room of the LEP, listening to yet another recruit prattle on about life –long achievements and goals. This was either the 29th, or the 34th 'I have always dreamed of being in the LEP, ever since I was a little kid…' blah blah blah.

Holly sighed, sitting straighter in her chair in an attempt do seem interested.

"Excuse me, Mr. Nevans was it?"

"Yes, Captain!" A salute. Frond, she hated salutes.

"You stated that before requesting this position, you also applied for a job at the GMA."(Gnomish Memorial Archives; collections of everything from mindwiped humans, all the way up to Frond's family line. BTW, I made it up. Duh.) "But they turned you down?"

"Yes, Captain." He replied, almost sheepish.

"Why is that."

"Erm, because I have a tendency to speak my mind, and writing accurate portfolios without adding what I think into them, I just couldn't do it."

"I see. Well, today is your lucky day, because you _need _to speak your mind to be in this line of work, so I'll send you up to Rosemary on the third floor and she'll put your name down for eligible recon attendants."

"Thankyou, Sir! I mean, Captain!" He saluted, again.

"Yes, you're welcome." Grumbled Holly absently. At least her job was done now. No more recruitments.

She left the interview room, taking the traveled path through the throngs of LEP hopefuls, down to the bottom floor: Mission ops.

"Honey? I'm home!" She called, grinning. (A/N: Not SERIOUSLY honey! Mockery! Duh!)

"Holly!" Said a delighted Foaly, clopping over to her from what resembled three different pieces of alien technology. "Finished recruitment?"

"Finally." She grinned. "You said I had to go topside, so what's up?"

"Nothing major, obviously. There's a blip in one of the HMF's out in lower England, it's causing a bit of interference with sat-navs, humans and fairies alike. Plus it's leaking like a bullet through a bucket, so anyone with intelligence can pick it up. Not likely to happen though, humans couldn't be bother investigating anything themselves. But we gotta replace it anyway."

"Right. That's all?"

"Sure, nothing much this week. A bit too slow if you ask me, but that may be my _paranoid _streak talking." He pouted.

"Fine, I'll stop calling you paranoid." She said. "So what have you got for me?"

"Not much really. Standard Recon gear; gun, wings, suit, helmet. But this," He said proudly, hefting a small, coin-sized panel, complete with tiny mike and buttons. "Is my newest innovation. This little beauty will replace the old com-screens in a years time. They have 100 percent updated land shapes, upgraded mikes, a faster working time, _and _it has a tracker, so that if you end up dropping your helmet and losing your suit, ending up pretty much naked on the way, we can still find you if you have this. I call it the G-screen"

Holly took the device, flipping it around to examine the back. "Nice. But won't it overheat? It's too small to have a fan."

Foaly grinned, retrieving the G-screen. "That's the best part. Porous metal, so 100 percent breathable, not to mention water cant get into any external air vents anymore, so totally waterproof. You could use this from here to Atlantis."

"Great, when do I go?"

Foaly glanced at the screen. "You've got five minutes 'til the next flare, so get done up and let's go."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Holly returned from the mission three hours later. She wasn't too much of a happy elf.

"You said I was CLEAR! That's when I nearly get hit by the worlds biggest aircraft! D'arvit! Aren't you monitoring all frequencies?"

"Sorry, Holly. The plane was unscheduled."

"You sensors still picked it up, didn't they? That's why they're, _isn't _it?"

Foaly opened his mouth to reply, but was litteraly saved by the bell. That bell was the message alert. An icon flashed red. Emergency.

Foaly manipulated some buttons, bringing up a picture of Commander Kelp. He seemed to be standing outside a factory.

"Hey Trouble, what's going on?" Inquired Foaly.

"Nothing good." Replied Kelp grimly. "A routine grunt mission to one of the old Koboi labs picked up emissions. Nothing major, so they didn't alert your sensors. But when we got in, all the old Koboi hardware under lockup had gone."

"So you mean all of the illegal weaponry, high-tech suits and a large stash of wings just went _missing_?" Said Holly, butting into the screen.

"Not totally, they –whoever they are- didn't get any weapons, but most of the suits and a large chunk of the wings are gone."

"And they were supposed to be under _guard. _With _your _technology if I'm not mistaken, Foaly." Stated Holly.

"Could this be related to the other incidents?" Asked Trouble.

"What incidents?" Asked Holly. They both ignored her.

"It's possible, but that means someone is messing with my technology, and only two people have ever been able to do that. One is locked up, and the other is supposed to be a friend."

"D'arvit tell me!" Yelled Holly.

Foaly sighed. "For a few weeks now, there have been minor glitches in my security and surveillance. Nothing major, but small things like missing alerts could mean potentially dangerous items being stolen, like in this case."

"And I didn't know this, why?"

"Because it didn't concern you. Besides, we couldn't confirm anything. Until now."

"What do you mean?" Asked Holly, frowning.

"Unique traces left by hacking or tampering with the technology has pointed to the same source, like a signature. Unfortunately, nothing definite, like a name. Just the same guy."

"Is it bad?"

"It may be." Butted in Trouble. "But we don't know for sure."

Just then a light started pulsing on a reference box. Foaly brought up a screen, and both he and Holly groaned.

"What?" Demanded Trouble.

Foaly grimaced and sent the file to the Commander's helmet. There was a brief period of silence, then;

"This is not good. Not good at all."


	2. 3 Little Humans

Thanks all for my reviews

**zThanks all for my reviews! Here is the next chapter. And for all those who read the fore note, please message me/review my story, and then tell me what you want to happen, what you think WILL happen, and who your favorite pairings will be.**

**I'm currently leaning towards Arty/Holly, Foaly/Cabelline (duh). Any others, message me.**

**Please rate each chapter as you reply for some personal feedback, and tell me what you did and didn't like. Thx! ******

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

"_Is it bad?"_

"_It may be." Butted in Trouble. "But we don't know for sure."_

_Just then a light started pulsing on a reference box. Foaly brought up a screen, and both he and Holly groaned._

"_What?" Demanded Trouble. _

_Foaly grimaced and sent the file to the Commander's helmet. There was a brief period of silence, then;_

"_This is not good. Not good at all."_

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Holly flew as fast as the 200kmph wings would allow her. Below Haven rushed by, ordinary civilians unaware of the possibly deadly circumstance that lay just beyond the cities borders, in an abandoned warehouse. (Isn't it always.)

She touched down on the disused shuttle entrance, and found Chix Verbil hovering by her shoulder nervously. Of course Chix had been part of the low importance crew who found this stuff. (A/N: He is EVERYWHERE! Seriously! Fowl siege, Holly and the goblins, someone should make a story where HE is the antagonist! Just an idea peoples!)

"The c'mmander wants you out in th' lobby, Hol- I mean captain." He seemed to anxious for seducing remarks, for the time being.

"Right," stated Holly, striding past him. As she entered the broken down storeshed, she immediately noticed that No. 1 was present. Pretty hard not to notice. But what surprised her was that she was surprised to see him. Foaly should have mentioned it.

"Foaly, why is No.1 out here?"

"There was a bit of a trace of magic left around the place, he was left to examine it. Turned out to be nothing important, so now he's just hanging around incase he can be useful later."

"Right," said Holly, switching off her mike.

Just then the Commander came up to her.

"Holly," Said Commander Kelp (A/N: He IS the best replacement for commander) "We've recovered three humans, not much else. No prints, no DNA, nothing. Not even a frame of video to capture who was here."

That's what had been on the tape. Minutes after the first robbery discovery, after teams had been dispatched to search every other remote location, a shot of a dead human had been patched through to Ops. But this wasn't the only one here.

"Cause of death?" Demanded Holly, turning to a medi-warlock. The People didn't have too many deaths, and even fewer murders. The possibility of finding three murdered HUMANS below ground was near laughable. But, Holly's life is always around that area.

"I cant really say," said the medic. "There are no human inflicted substances, that's for sure, but no external injuries. We're doing some scans now."

"Foaly," snapped Holly, flicking on her mike. "What's going on here?"

Foaly had, of course hacked into the camera frequency for the building and could see everything.

"Nothing _unusual, _just a few dead mudmen, four thousand more feet below the ground than they should be. Nothing that doesn't crop up every-"

"Shut it, Foaly! This is serious! The implications are catestrophical!" Trouble snapped.

"Less with the political side, you're starting to sound like Sool. But yes, this is bad. I just got the names of all the not so unsubs. Names aren't important, but they all came from the chute nearest here, E1. We all know where that is."

(A/N: except me! I think E1 is in Ireland, but if it isn't, it is now.)

"Ireland." Breathed Holly. "Why is it _always _Ireland?"

"Because there is something wrong with that country. Artemis Fowl, blah blah blah. Now Foaly, cause of death? Anything we haven't picked up?"

Foaly frowned. "There was an incident like this a couple of thousand years ago. Some deranged fairy was experimenting with mike-implants into the fairy body, but, of course, physical experiments are illegal if there is risk to the patient, yada yada. But this bright spark pulled a couple of homeless humans out from up top and shot them full of technology. Of course, this technology has already been perfected, but it could be a similar circumstance. I'll need to check their brains to be sure of no tampering. Their pupils show signs of mesmerism, but that was always going to be a factor."

"But the scans show no sign of internal technology implants." Protested Trouble. "And the chemical analysis came up negative."

"It doesn't need to be detectable. In fact, that could be the whole point of them being here."

"What could be?" Asked Holly, rejoining the conversation.

"That whoever did this wants to show us their undetectable technology, or they simply wanted to prove a point. But there is another possibility…" Continued Foaly.

"What?" Demanded Trouble.

"These three could have decided to go for a picnic, falling into E1, surviving unsurvivable magma, and then-"

"Foaly!" Hissed Holly and Trouble at the same time.

"Alright, alright, not probable. But anyway, we'll need to asses this situation."

"Right." Nodded Trouble, reaching for his all-frequencies broadcaster. "This is Commander Kelp, all above ground missions are to be postponed or withdrawn, unless they are absolutely necessary. I want the city in lockdown, and all security doubled- no tripled on all chutes."

"Right. Now all we can do is figure out what killed these mudmen." Sighed Trouble.

"With respect, Commander, but can I request an 'absolutely necessary' topside mission?" Inquired Holly.

Trouble glanced at her. "You're going to talk with –"

"I'm going to have a talk with Artemis Fowl."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Artemis was just finishing a book on the theorem of relativity, something he knew of by heart, when his fairy communicator buzzed. He did the usual flipping and twirling, finally settling back with what looked like an imaginary phone.

"Holly?" He asked.

"Hey, Artemis. You will never guess why I'm calling."

"There is a problem below ground?" Smiled Artemis.

"Isn't there always." Groaned Holly. "And we're supposed to be the peaceful race! Anyway, I'm on my way, so have twins and your parents out of the way."

"Not a problem Holly, the twins are with Juliet, out of town, and my parents are in England."

"Good for them. I'll be there in half an hour." She hung up.

Artemis smiled. He always enjoyed Holly's visits, even if they did mean trouble.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

"So what has happened below ground now?"

Holly sank back into a human sized chair, brushing her shoulder-blade length hair from her face. It had been over seven hours since the first discovery of the stolen goods, and what had proceeded had been none to light to bear.

"Earlier this morning, a routine surveillance group uncovered some missing Koboi technology."

"Wonderful. Some rogue elf running round with a case full of stolen devices of dear Opal's."

"That's not the worst of it." Grimaced Holly. "We also recovered three deceased Humans in another remote location. No visible causes of death."

Artemis frowned. "Now that IS a problem. Haven is in lockdown, I suppose."

"Correct." Sighed Holly. "The autopsies on the mudmen wont be done for at least an hour."

Artemis sat up straighter in his chair. "And you are here because?"

Holly raised an eyebrow. "Because no matter who the enemy is, whenever you are involved, your side always seems to win. And I suppose the dead mudmen need a representative of their own species in their murder case." She paused, then added "we haven't had a murder inquiry in years!"

"So what are Mr. Foaly's theories?"

"Ask him yourself" moaned Holly, handing him her communicator. "I didn't understand it when he explained it to me. He cant access your security system, so no TV talking. That communicator is all that works up here."

Artemis switched it onto speaker. "Theories, Foaly?"

"We-el, it could be a fairy who either wants to prove how tough he is, or is experimenting with some sort of device or influence. Happened a couple of years back, but of course, it is legal."

"Hey!" exclaimed Holly. "How come he gets the short lecture?"

Foaly snorted. "One, because I didn't want poor darling Captain Short to sit through it again, and the fact that Fowl probably understands it without the other tidbits of information."

"Not true. You can never resist a lecture."

"Alright you got me. I have three other people on the line, one being the council. Apparently I interrupted another vole curry filled meeting."

"So any suspects?" Butted in Artemis, before Holly could reply.

"Not really. Not really Opal's style, and no other tech-heads would harm a human. And all the human haters check out. But you never know. I've doubled security on all possible suspects. But really, we don't have much to go on. No one has _this _much of a hate for mudmen, and before you ask, these three have nothing to do with the People."

"I agree, this person seems to have no hatred against humans in particular." Agreed Artemis.

"What are you? A psychologist? How do you know?" Snorted Holly.

Artemis smiled. "If this person did have a problem with Humans, they would most probably have targeted me. I am the one who knows most about the people, and, if they did hold something against us, I would be their first target, as they would be disgusted with this Human contact. Of course, they may be aiming for me still, but then, they wouldn't have disposed of the Human evidence so obviously as for you to uncover their plot."

"Really. That's nice Artemis." Said Holly. "Before you raise your eyebrow or make a sarcastic comment, I did try to listen, I truly did. But after the second sentence…

Artemis raised an eyebrow. (duh)

Holly sighed.

"Continuing on, Captain, would you be able to send a shuttle up to the surface with lockdown in effect?"

Holly and Foaly frowned. "Why?"

Artemis smiled wolfishly. (A/N: Sorry folks, no vampire yet!) "I don't think you should assume I can help you in any way from up here?"

Holly glanced needlessly at the communicator. "We'll get one up right away."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

**I wrote this chapter while listening to 'Dream catch me' by Newton Faulkner. Awesome song. I also recommend 'All your reasons' by Matchbox 20. Fawesome! Please RandR my chappie! Please! I need feedback. Read top of chapter for details. Thanks to the four ppl who reviewed last chapter!**


	3. Nose Bleed

The next installment into my story

**The next installment into my story. Yea. I'm getting to the plot. Well, I'm getting to **_**explaining **_**the plot.**

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**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

"_Continuing on, Captain, would you be able to send a shuttle up to the surface with lockdown in effect?"_

_Holly and Foaly frowned. "Why?"_

_Artemis smiled wolfishly. "I don't think you should assume I can help you in any way from up here?"_

_Holly glanced needlessly at the communicator. "We'll get one up right away."_

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

"You called, Artemis?" Inquired Butler from the Living room door.

The young mastermind turned in his chair to face his bodyguard. "It seems the People are in need of our assistance again, old friend. Humans turning up dead and missing technology. We have a little, trip, to make."

"One that involves a few weeks, sir?"

"Exactly."

Butler nodded, turning for the door. "I have some things that could be of use." He stopped, glancing at his charge. "I'll be taking your case, too, sir." Then he left.

Holly frowned. "What's in the case?"

Artemis smiled, although it didn't reach his eyes. "Personal effects." He answered vaguely.

Holly didn't know if she wanted to inquire further.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

In the shuttle, Butler greeted Holly formally.

"Hello, Holly. Long time no see." He said, hugging her.

"Not as long as last time, Butler." She answered, hugging him back.

Section 8 had been busy, Foaly especially, as he was now technical advisor for both the LEP and Section 8, now that Sool had gone. He had put his extensive budget into use, designing and manufacturing a modified version of the shimmer suit, especially for Holly. Now her suit changed at will. Holly seemed to find this highly useful, trying to get the jump on both Butler and Artemis.

"New suits? Foaly never runs out of ideas."

Holly smiled as her suit shifted to a deep blue. "Not with a mind like his. But even he can't compare to you, mudboy." She answered, punching Artemis's arm. He winced, only slightly, and Butler twitched from his place on the floor. Holly frowned, she had only tried to cheer him up, having said next to nothing all flight.

Foaly interrupted the silence. "Hey, Holly! I heard that. No comparing me to mudboys, ok?"

Holly grinned. "Can't promise that, Foaly,"

The centaur pouted. "Well, the reason I'm here is to smooth out your accommodation for the next few days. Obviously, no hotels, few as they are, will take humans, so you're going to have to bunk with one of the LEP. No offence, but none of them want to bunk with you either, one of you being big enough to mistake them for a fly, the other probably freak them out. So unfortunately, you'll have to split. One at my house, one at Holly's."

Artemis glanced at Holly, catching the momentary expression that flickered across her face. She knew who she was stuck with.

"Holly's house won't fit Butler, and I would think that Butler would rather Artemis be with someone who can protect him anyway. Oh, and two genii together and two bodyguard/police stuck together, may not be the best combination."

Artemis, who had frowned at the first sentence, said "I can take care of myself, an I can shoot just fine." (A/N: Stuff that crud about Arty not being able to shoot in the TP! Come on! It's not that hard!)

"Sure, Artemis, whatever you say. Now that that's sorted out, you can just sit back for the rest of the flight." He terminated the link with a wiggle of his fingers.

"Great," moaned Holly. "Stuck with a mudboy for a week."

Butler smiled in an uncanny resemblance of Artemis. "Don't worry, he's not _that _bad."

Artemis just smiled.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Before Butler got off, he handed Artemis his black case, while Holly wasn't looking.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

By the time they had reached Holly's third floor apartment, Holly felt the need to punch Artemis in the head. He had given her three lectures already, life with him, even for a week, was going to be hell.

She suddenly respected Butler a whole lot more.

"Hurry up, mudboy." Sighed Holly, stepping from the shuttle.

Artemis stepped into Holly's surprisingly cold six room house, consisting of a kitchen, living room, two bedrooms, a bathroom and a dining room. Everything was neat, but then again, there wasn't much to make it messy.

"Don't go shopping much?" Asked Artemis, fingering one of the few ornaments in the room.

"Not much time, especially if you're part of the LEP." She put down one of Artemis's three cases she had been helping to carry. Brushing her hair from her eyes.

Artemis frowned. "You don't have anything artistic in here, either." He commented.

"Well, I'm sorry. Snapped Holly. "Not all of us can live in a personal Art Gallery."

"But Holly," He protested, raising an eyebrow. "Not having any paintings, that's almost a crime." A smile tugged at his lips.

Holly shook her head, smiling as well. "Come on." She lugged his bag down the hall.

"This is your room. I don't get too many guests, but I didn't have any other need for this room, so a bedroom it became. The bed may be a little too small for a human, but then again," she said, looking him up and down. "Maybe not."

It was true, Artemis was only a head taller than Holly, and didn't seem to be growing at all. If anything, he was shrinking.

"Well, you can, get ready, or whatever. Dinner should be in an hour."

Artemis smirked. "Should be?"

"I get side tracked. Or burn the food. I'm not a great cook, so don't expect anything from the Fowl's A La Carte menu."

Artemis nodded and went into his room, Holly heading for the kitchen.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

An hour and ten minutes later, Holly went to get Artemis for dinner. She knocked on the door, but received no reply.

Frowning, she went in, to find the most interesting sight she had seen all day.

Artemis Fowl was asleep.

Closer, she could see sweat on his brow, and a slight frowning in his sleep.

"_Should I let him rest?" Thought Holly. "Well, I can't let him go hungry."_

Gently, she shook him. He stirred, miss-matched eyes fluttering open. He sat up.

"I apologies, Holly. I should not have fallen asleep. That was most rude of me."

"There's nothing wrong with that." Frowned Holly. "I just thought you might be hungry. Plenty of time to sleep later."

"Very good." Said Artemis, glancing at his watch. "Right on time, too."

"If you say so," she laughed, bouncing off his bed, out the door.

Artemis smiled, following her out the door.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Dinner was a dainty affair. Artemis sat in his un-changed Armani suit, minus one jacket, while Holly lounged in a tee-shirt and slacks. (Or the elvish equivalent). Holly ate with her usual flourishes, while Artemis ate slowly and deliberately.

But despite the difference in class, their conversations went quite smoothly. Dinner was chicken and rice, grown/raised in specialized underground environments.

"…and that was like, the fifth rouge troll this week! Someone should just fence them all up. They'll eat themselves to death eventually. Honestly, I really don't know why they even exist."

"Indeed." Agreed Artemis, wiping away some food from the corner of his mouth.

Holly cocked her head. "So what about you? Anything interesting in Fowl Manor? How are the twins?"

Artemis smiled. "Ah, the twins. Wonderful children that they are, I'm not sure whether my clothes can stand going through the wash again. Too much finger painting."

"You? Finger painting? That must be a sight." She smirked.

"Well, I must admit, I rather prefer proper landscape drawings, but –" He stopped abruptly, hands flying to his face.

"What?" Frowned Holly, leaning forward. Then she noticed a trail of blood leaking from beneath his fingers.

She dived across the table, dragging his hands away. His nose was bleeding profusely, dribbling onto his lip and into his outstretched hand. She ran to get tissues.

Artemis held them against his face.

"Sorry." He apologized. "I have been getting quite abrupt nosebleeds recently."

"Are you alright?" She asked, genuinely concerned. "I could heal it."

"No. It will stop. But thank you for the offer." The tissue was starting to show red.

"Are you sure?"

"Quite."

After several minutes, Holly had to wonder how much 'quite' sure was. The tissue had turned crimson, and when a trail of blood squeezed down his arm, dripping off his elbow onto his pants, Holly couldn't sit and find out.

She gently removed his hands from his nose, releasing a fresh wave of blood down his lips.

Placing two fingers on his nose, she whispered; "Heal"

Blue sparks shot down her fingers, sinking into his flesh. Artemis shuddered, twitched, then gasped.

"Thank you, Holly." He said, gingerly touching his face. He glanced at the previously white table cloth. "I apologize for that."

Holly didn't even glance at the spoilt piece of cloth. "No apologizing, Arty. What happened?"

Artemis raised his eyebrow, looking as dignified as possible while covered in blood.

"Arty?"

"You rather I call you mudboy?" She smiled.

"No. I just wondered why you said it."

"So does that mean I have permission to call the great criminal mastermind by his mother's pet name."

"It could if you looked at it a certain way." He smiled crookedly.

"Don't think you can change the topic, Artemis. What happened?"

He sighed. "I get increasingly unexpected nosebleeds. Nothing to worry about."

"You nearly bled to death! How was that nothing to worry about?"

"No need to over exaggerate Holly. I'm fine. But if you don't mind, I am a little tired."

Holly glanced at the clock. It was barely eight. But then again, he had fallen asleep before.

"Fine. But if that ever happens again, tell me. Ok?"

He nodded, standing. Holly noticed his near full bowl.

"Wait, aren't you going to finish eating?"

He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can not eat anymore."

Holly laughed. "That bad?"

"Not at all, I just won't be able to eat anymore."

She shrugged. "Alright. Your funeral."

Artemis left the room.

"Perhaps." He whispered.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

An hour later, when Holly went to check on him, Artemis was fast asleep, lying on top of the bed. He had only just managed to get changed, and was wearing a long sleeved black night shirt and trousers.

Holly frowned. It was far too cold to be sleeping like that. She went over, pulling the sheet around him. He barely even stirred. She noted that there was the sheen of sweat on his forehead again.

Holly left the room, closing the door behind her.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

The next morning, Artemis woke, considerably warmer than he'd expected. He looked down, noticing the blankets were pulled around him. He smiled. He certainly hadn't done that.

Glancing at the clock, he sat up, changing into a casual shirt and pants. (not too causal, thank you very much.) For the next hour, until Holly got up, he sat at his laptop, thinking.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

"Have you been up all night?" Asked Holly from the doorway.

Artemis didn't even turn. "Only an hour or so."

She came over to him, leaning over his shoulder. "What you looking at?"

"Foaly's files on the recent missing equipment."

Holly smirked. "And I don't suppose you got those in an email?"

A slight grin touched his face. "I suppose not."

"Anything interesting?" She asked, pushing him so there was enough room for her to sit down on the bed.

"Nothing. That confuses me. No picture, sound, it's as though the humans just walked down there, invisible, and keeled over dead."

"Well I wouldn't put it past them. They are a bit odd."

"Yes, they are, aren't they?"

Holly frowned. They?

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Two hours later, Holly, Artemis, Foaly and Butler were sitting around the cramped table in the Ops booth.

"So how did you two survive the night?" Laughed Foaly.

"Oh yes, right damn horrible, it was." Snorted Holly sarcastically. "But unfortunately, while you were thinking up insults, Artemis was working on the possible crisis."

"Some of Artemis's back chatting has rubbed off on you, I see."

Artemis leaned forward, all wide-eyed and smiles. "Why, Foaly, how do you know none of Holly's temper has rubbed off onto me?"

Foaly grimaced.

"I don't have a temper!" Exclaimed Holly, punching him on the arm. She remembered a second too late that this wasn't a good thing to do.

Artemis winced. Butler shifted in his seat again. Artemis attempted a weak smile.

"Now that the usual banter is over, perhaps we can discuss serious matters at hand."

The rest nodded.

"Right," said Foaly, standing up. "We found zero evidence. The lab tests turned up a big negatori, and we have no evidence whatsoever. But," he continued, clopping over to another monitor. "What we do have is a location. Simple, I know, but that's it." He brought up a panel.

"The three humans have absolutely nothing in common, age, gender, race, height, build, blah blah blah. But what we do have is that they were all reported missing within a week of each other, and they all went missing in the southern part of Ireland."

"So what does that tell us?" Asked Holly.

"Not much." Admitted Foaly. "I'm working on cross referencing any possible suspects above ground travels with the disappearances, but so far none."

"And Opal?" Asked Butler. "She has escaped prison before."

Foaly's tail swished in annoyance. "No, mudman. And before you ask there have been no mysterious blackouts and at least one trusted officer has been staffed at all times to guard her."

Artemis sat forward, brow furrowed in thought.

"Who knew the location of the equipment lockdown?" Asked Artemis.

Foaly turned. "Not many. Not even the crew who were stationed at the area knew what they were guarding. The only fairies who knew were Trouble, me, the Council Members, and Sool."

Artemis's eyebrow raised fractionally. "Sool? Was he not 'dismissed', as your records put it?"

"Technically, yes." Admitted Foaly. "But he wouldn't do anything like this… would he?" He glanced at Holly.

"Yes." She said.

"Ah." Foaly cleared his throat. "We'll have to pay him a visit then."

"That we will." Agreed Artemis nodding.

Foaly called up his sat-phone on video. Trouble Kelp's face appeared on screen. "Trouble, we need to pay our good old Commander a visit."

Trouble frowned. "Why. Last I heard, he was dragged kicking and screaming out of office."

"We think he could know something about the most recent cases." Butted in Holly.

Trouble nodded, thoughtful. "I'll get right on it." The link was terminated.

"He won't be home." Stated Artemis, leaning back in his chair.

"Why do you think that?" Asked Holly, turning on him. She wasn't too happy about contcting Sool without Artemis making clever deductions.

"He just won't." He answered, checking his fingernails.

Half an hour later, a communication light winked on,

"Trouble?"

"He won't reply to message, and he isn't at home. No one has seen him for weeks. Sorry, guys, but he's gone."

"D'arvit." Swore Holly.

"Told you."

Artemis got a smack on his arm for his troubles.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

How was it peeps! Sorry for the lame Authors note, my mum is standing over me with a stake knife, screaming bloody murder if I don't go to bed. So now you have a little more info on Arty, (a liiiiitle), and you know who the bad guy is.

Yea, seeya.


	4. Scammed!

Hey peoples

**Hey peoples! Hopefully this chapter will explain the others, but, you know.**

**If you like this story, check out my C2 – The best on the site – I need more subscribers! If you like the genre of this story, you'll probably like the other stories there too!**

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

_Half an hour later, a communication light winked on,_

"_Trouble?"_

"_He won't reply to message, and he isn't at home. No one has seen him for weeks. Sorry, guys, but he's gone."_

"_D'arvit." Swore Holly._

"_Told you."_

_Artemis got a smack on his arm for his troubles._

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Once again, Artemis, Holly, Butler and Foaly sat around the observation booth's table, discussing the location of Sool.

"His house? Relatives? Known places of stay? Come on Foaly, fairies don't just disappear!" Cried Holly. She was the most distressed about the missing ex-commander. Wherever he may be, she knew he couldn't be up to something good.

Foaly raised his palms in surrender. "Holly, I'm doing everything I can! There are so many places he could be hiding! He's probably on the surface now, anyway."

"Please, would you two incompetents stop bickering?" Said an exasperated Artemis, pinching his nose. "As Foaly has stated, there are a million and one places our elusive officer could be hiding, and we need a lead to start eliminating any."

"Listen, mudboy. Just because you know our language and have been underground, does not mean you know anything about us personally. You've seen Sool, he's an absolute b'''''d, and no one has done anything to dis-encourage that. He thinks he can do anything he wants, and he will" Holly snapped.

As Artemis opened his mouth to reply testily, a communication ping went up. A grim-faced Trouble Kelp popped up on a screen.

"You'd all better see this." He said, not wasting time on a greeting. Everyone looked up, frowning. A news feed had appeared in the place of Trouble. It showed none other than the grim face of Ark Sool.

"An hour ago, Ex-Commander Ark Sool arrived at the LEP police plaza in downtown Haven, claiming to have been alerted to a conspiracy." Crooned the reporter. "He claims that the LEP technical consultant centaur Foaly, the notorious Captain Holly Short, the Human Criminal Genius Artemis Fowl and his bodyguard have been staging a massive scam in order to develop software technology, using their Human and law enforcement ties to blackmail their way though it."

The picture switched to Ark Sool being interviewed by dozens of microphones.

"…I have irrefutable evidence that these four members of the _heroic _band have done nothing but create scandals in order for publicity and legal immunity. Captain Short herself has been investigated four times to date, and after every event which started the questioning, she had miraculously saved the world from yet another conveniently timed plot. The centaur Foaly was accused for disarming the whole LEP while providing the Goblins with Softnose lasers, but by the time the whole thing was over, the only reliable witness was comatose. The only witnesses were, of course, the Captain, the two humans, and Commander Julius Root. Let me remind the public that Root is now deceased, What's to say that Julius had wanted out of their clever little scam, and had gotten killed as a result."

"That's not fair!" Cried Holly, Jumping to her feet. The rest shushed her as Sool continued.

"…Again, the only witnesses were Foaly, Captain Short, and myself." Sool drew himself up to full height. "I am here today to say that the four named have been the ones who have killed the recently discovered humans, and they were the ones to steal the weapons. Foaly himself stated only he and the current Commander knew the location of these weapons."

"How is Holly Short involved in all of this?" Barked a tough looking gnome.

"Holly Short. A blow out if I ever saw one. She was the underground brawn, blackmailing, snooping around, maybe even going as far as to mesmerize a few fairies while she was at it. No, Captain Short is to be brought back and finally an investigation is to be carried out. And this time, no magical plot will emerge that will grant her free of charges."

"Why would the two humans kill three of their own?" Squeaked a small pixie reporter.

"Because humans are inconsistent creatures, and care only for themselves. Artemis Fowl and his bodyguard have scammed the fairy people out of a whole lot of gold before, haven't they. The two obviously corrupt fairies have offered them a reward in return for the use of his brain."

"Do you have evidence to support these claims?" Asked a reporter, pointy ears quivering.

"As a matter of fact I do. With me I have technical expert, Karan Mendier. I have employed him to show you something." The attention was turned to Mendier.

"From this server," he said, producing a laptop from his bag. "I can access Foaly's most recent files." He called up a screen, gnomish symbols dancing around. "As you can see, the most recent activity has been in trying to track down Mr Sool here."

"I have been in hiding for the last week, because I knew that Centaur knew I was piecing together his well hidden con. I had to preserve myself, in order to show the public what was really happening behind our backs, and in turn, he was trying to find me. Why else would he be looking for me?"

"You may also be interested to know that the two humans in question, Fowl and Butler, are currently underground at this very moment." A loud uproar went up from the crowd, and Sool raised his hands. "I know, I know. It would seem that they were called down to help in finding me before I exposed them. But unfortunately, what else I have to say can only be said in private, for it may become dangerous for me, if the four criminals were to become desperate and try and assassinate me. They will, of course, have at least a few softnoses left over from their supposed B'wa Kell swindle."

The reporter was back. "And there you have it. The amazing exposure of the Fearsome Foursome's extreme plots, and the brave actions of Ark Sool that brought them to you. Last word was that several renowned scientists and behavioral analysis's have confirmed that Mr. Sool's story is highly plausible. Investigations are continuing" The picture switched to a news jingle, and Trouble was back.

The whole groups sat in silence.

"That-" Started Foaly

"Was the most-" Continued Holly.

"Ludicrous accusation-" stated Artemis.

"That we have ever heard. Yea yea." Waved Kelp. "Only problem, most of the fairies are seeing the sense in it."

"What!" Screamed Holly, exploding to her feet. "How can the DO this to us! That D'arviting Mother D'arviter…."

"Borrowed a few human curses, I see." Whispered Artemis to Foaly, as Holly's rant continued.

"Not only that," continued Trouble grimly. "But the so called Karan Mendier has 'claimed' that, using Foaly's remigar, he can say that the last thing each of these humans saw was Artemis Fowl and Butler. Sool's claiming you two were the abductors."

"You don't _believe _any of this do you?" Cried Holly.

Kelp waved his hand. "No Holly. I don't. Not for one second. You four should lay low for a while, and unfortunately that means no leaving to the surface, mudboys." Kelp paused, another communication was on the other line. He flicked back. "Sorry, an emergency hearing has been called. I'll get back to you ASAP." The connection was cut.

Silence shrouded the group.

"That b'''''d! He _can _not get away with this!" Holly was ranting again.

"Holly," said Artemis calmly. "This is beyond our control, for now. Sool will be under police protection because of the 'dangers' we pose against him. For now, all we can do is wait for Commander Kelp's hearing to end."

"Well _I _cant! I wont just sit back and watch! He insulted everything we've done! D'arvit, he's a liar!"

"The problem is, Holly," Said Foaly sadly. "Is the only reason you are so worked up is that you _know _that what he says easily matches up with reality."

"But it does not." Amended Artemis. "Why on earth would we need Human test subjects for technology? What will keep us alive is that he has no evidence on the strong point of the argument. As it is said in a debate, hit an argument at its team line and the rest will come crumbling down." He grimaced. "Foaly, does Sool have complete access to your files?"

Foaly frowned. "Of course not!"

"Had he previously?"

"Well, more than he does now, but never all of it, no."

"Did he ever have the chance to see that file on IDP's?"

Foaly's face went white, and his eyes grew wider. "How did you…"

"None of your files are off limits to me, now, answer the question."

"Wait a minute!" Growled Holly. "What are you two talking about?"

Artemis turned to her. "About twenty years ago, Foaly designed a unique brand of internal devouring parasites, hence the abbreviation. They are designed to feed off electrical pulses."

"Electrical pulses?"

Foaly took up the narrative. "In the brain, there are tiny electrical signals that connect the nerves, create pain, thoughts etc."

"Foaly had made it so that he could select any one of these so that he could, say, stop the muscles functioning for a short period of time. This would result in non lethal, non painful incarceration." Continued Artemis. "But, of course, testing would need to be done, and the council would not allow it."

"I was quite annoyed." Admitted Foaly. "I could have proved there would have been no side effects or repercussions if used properly, and five years of research and study went into the project. But I didn't do or say anything that could make anyone believe that I would go to these measures to complete the project."

"Just one problem" Interrupted Artemis. "The signals that promote and control the thoughts could easily be affected. This would result in what is known as mind control. Now, if I were Sool, I would manipulate this situation to make it seem as though we had thoughts of world domination, or something to the effect."

"Not Sool. He couldn't do that. Waaaaay too dumb. He would need help, but from where?" Asked Holly.

No answers were offered. Before the issue could be discussed any further, they were interrupted, once again, by Trouble. He didn't look to happy. To put it lightly, he looked pissed.

"Sool!" He hissed. "Has either bribed or blackmailed the council, or he has offered solid evidence to support him. Either way, he just successfully kicked me out of office."

"What!" Exclaimed Holly and Foaly. "You mean you are no longer Commander?"

"No," he growled. "The Council 'decided' he would be the best to lead this investigation, and that his firing wasn't totally necessary in the first place."

"He cant-"

"He _did _Holly. And what's more, he's now insisting that the four of you be found immediately, using all necessary force, yada yada. You four had better leave the ops booth, that'll be the first place they'll come, if they aren't already there. You cant stop this by getting arrested."

Foaly's face was pale, and Holly was looking a bit peaky too.

"Would above ground be the best option?" Asked Artemis.

He nodded. "Definitely. Not Fowl Manor, of course. You should split up. Not totally, maybe in pairs. You have a better chance of staying hidden that way. Sorry, Butler, but one fairy per team would be best. The last thing we want is two clueless humans with no contact to Haven."

Butler nodded, although his lips tightened. Artemis glanced calmly at him.

"I will be fine, Butler. If it helps you, Holly will be with me."

"Me? Who said I was going with you?"

He turned his gaze onto her. "For the reasons Commander – sorry, Trouble Kelp has mentioned. Foaly and I are the only ones capable of getting in touch with Haven via hacking, and we need one brain one brawn per team."

"And you certainly are no brawn" Muttered Holly.

Artemis raised his eyebrow. "In any case, we need to leave immediately. Please, gather anything you need."

"What about you?" Asked Foaly.

"I have everything I need, except clothes, of course."

"Right, whatever." Said Holly. "One cham-pod, two standard survival kits, four changes of clothes and enough rations for five weeks. All that per team. We should be able to get a residence, one that lets us remain inconspicuous for the time being." She stopped. "D'arvit, this is all happening to fast."

"No time for lists, Holly." Said Artemis, dragging her by her elbow, taking the gear with him. "Time is short."

Holly easily twisted out of his grasp. "Yea, don't I know it."

"We'll be in touch. Holly, use frequency 1872, it only works within a hundred kilometers, but at least you have some privacy." Said Foaly.

She nodded, "Bye Butler, Foaly." And then she and the mud genius were gone.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

"Where to, Captain?" Inquired Artemis, strapping himself into the co-pilot chair of an LEP shuttle. Holly spoke as she made a beeline for the chute.

"Obviously this shuttle can be tracked, so we're getting out at lower Spain. Somewhere in the orchard district, long open spaces, not many residents. We'll leave the shuttle in E38, continuing by wings. Advanced, untraceable types, obviously. We'll have to use the cham-pod as a house, because I don't think 15 year old Irish kids and a fairy usually ask to rent houses in Spain. But don't worry, this cham-pod is designed for long stays in unfamiliar territory, not stake out missions, so there are five rooms. Two bedrooms, a bathroom, Kitchen and Dining/lounge. But you don't really need to know that."

A ping went off on the dash, telling them they had been contacted. A tinny voice came through the wiring.

"Occupants of the vehicle, you are instructed to land immediately, and are to be taken into LEP custody for questioning on the basis of treachery to the People-"

Holly cut in. "Listen, _officer,_ you can read me my rights later, like, when Igive a damn."

The officer sounded relieved. "Right. You know, I hate this job. Same line, different day. I usually get some really snappy remarks, and I usually don't get the third word in."

"That's great. But do you recon you can not alert Sool to this?"

There was a pause as the fairy on the other end of the line moved some controls around, making sure the channel was secure.

"You kidding? Tell Sool I've found you? I hate that gnome. Trouble has been kicked out because of him and now he's got us arresting you. No worries. As soon as you hang up there will be no memory of your contact."

Holly relaxed. "Good. Now, I have some other matters to attend to." She pressed the call block button.

"Will he tell Sool?" Asked Artemis.

Holly didn't reply until she had swerved through a particularly sharp bend in the tunnel.

"Who knows? But even before Sool got kicked out the first time, no one liked him. And even if he does find out, we'll be gone."

Artemis settled back in his chair. "Good. Now, I need to know more about that case, something only an attending officer could have seen."

"I'll enlighten you then…"

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Two hours later, Holly was lecturing Artemis for a change.

"This construct can hold up to five people comfortably, and keeps body heat from showing up on radar, but at the same time keeping the chemicals on the inside the same as on the outside. Foaly changed that feature after I told him how you found Opal's shuttle. It is self sustainable, with four weeks worth of water, it breaks down waste, and it is fully camouflaged. You can't find this thing unless the front door is open. Or ifu know where it is."

While she had said this, the cham-pod had unpacked itself and fully erected, deep inside a cave where humans were unlikely to venture.

"That's wonderful, Holly. But the camouflage uses are only necessary if we are inside."

They entered the structure, finding small lounges, mattresses, sinks, toilets, a shower, a kitchen area/table and a clothes washer.

"All this was crowded into that tiny package?" Asked Artemis, slightly awed.

"Yep. Each furniture item can be compacted to one thousandth of its current size."

"You certainly have been around Foaly too much."

"No comment." Grinned Holly. "Now, we've each got a blanket each. It gets pretty cold in caves, and this place doesn't have air conditioning, so I hope we got some warm clothes."

Artemis grimaced. "We only have fairy clothes. I should fit, but I don't want to think of what I look like."

Holly laughed. "Come on, mudboy. You won't look_ that_ bad as a fairy."

Artemis's expression changed to something Holly could only conclude as being thoughtful, but different to Artemis's usual expression.

"Maybe."

There was a silence.

"Well, Captain. I don't know about you, but I am tired, so I shall leave you to it."

Holly shrugged. "Not much to do. But alright. Night."

Artemis nodded. "Good night."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

The next morning, Holly awoke at seven.

"D'arvit!" She swore. She should have been up earlier than this. She pulled on a standard issue LEP uniform, hurrying to the kitchen for breakfast. Both she and Artemis had missed dinner last night, and she was famished.

After a hasty breakfast, she went to see what Artemis was doing. Knocking received no reply, so she entered, curse her curious nature.

Artemis was still asleep, huddled in the blankets against the cold. His forehead was creased in a light frown.

He looked so peaceful, Holly didn't want to disturb him. He looked so _cute_…

Cute? Where did that come from? Holly left the room quietly, there wasn't much he could do anyway.

She set up a compact computer – affectionately referred to as a com-com by Foaly – calling up two screens. One was the Haven city news feed, the other was a link to Foaly's computer.

"Hi Holly, how goes things?"

"Alright. A little cold, but other than that…"

"Mud boy think of anything new?"

Holly snorted. "Don't know. He's still asleep."

Foaly raised an eyebrow. "At this time? Anyway, I've got virtually nothing, so there's no use staying connected. More chance for the frequency to be picked up. I'll contact you tomorrow, or if anything turns up."

"Me too. Say hi to Butler for me."

Foaly nodded. "Will do." And terminated the link.

Holly leaned back in her chair, flicking over to the news feed.

"…And the newly reinstated Commander Ark Sool has today announced that the four most wanted beings have made a run for the surface, eluding capture."

"…They must be found at all costs. They are a danger and a menace to all people, Humans and Fairies alike. I am currently inquiring into the use of demon warlocks into aiding the search, and I hope that the request will be granted within the next few days…"

"That cant be good." Muttered Holly, worried.

"Not one bit." Agreed Artemis.

Holly jumped. Artemis was sitting in the chair beside her. How he had got there, Frond probably didn't know.

"Don't do that!" Exclaimed Holly, punching his arm.

Artemis smiled, rubbing his shoulder. "I'm not the kind of person to make a noisy entrance."

"Touché."

"Do we have a heading?"

She frowned. "No. Not really. We'll have to find out how Sool plans to spin this."

He nodded, and Holly took her first good look at him.

"You should get changed. You've got blood on your shirt."

Artemis grimaced and looked down. "I know."

He did look a little windswept. His hair was ruffled up and his clothes had lost their ironed sheen.

Holly fingered the stain. "Didn't I tell you to tell me if your nose bled again?"

He waved her hand away. "I'm fine Holly. It was nothing major."

Holly raised her eyebrow, (A/N: Aren't these peoples eyebrows getting work outs!)

"Fine, I'll be back here after I change."

She nodded. "I'll search through Sools computer records."

He left the room, leaving the elf sitting at the monitor.

Even in the middle of a major crisis, Holly still didn't like desk work.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Holly frowned, leaning closer to the screen. This wasn't right. There was a change in details here. But she couldn't be sure what. She needed Artemis.

She stood up, headed for Artemis's room. The door was ajar, so Holly stepped inside, knowing that someone like Artemis wouldn't strip bare with the door open.

She stopped dead, face going pale.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz **

Dam dum daaaam! Hehe. Cliffie. All that jazz. Oooooh! Sool's back! Don't like him, not one bit. Lol. If you have any comments/questions, yada yada, feel free to contact me. Once again, review! I like the whole feedback, It helps with the story!

Xxx. AlinaAnila.


	5. Raindrops

Woo hoo

**Woo hoo! Thankyou to the lovely ten people who have reviewed! I left you hanging there, but if I get 15 reviews by the time I post the next chappie, I'll make it a 20 word document page chapter! So extra long, meaning lots of plot! I try to make every chapter longer than the last!**

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**Once again, subscribe to my C2 community!**

**PS: If I get 100 reviews by the end of the story, I'll kill Sool!**

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

_Holly frowned, leaning closer to the screen. This wasn't right. There was a change in details here. But she couldn't be sure what. She needed Artemis._

_She stood up, headed for Artemis's room. The door was ajar, so Holly stepped inside, knowing that someone like Artemis wouldn't strip bare with the door open._

_She stopped dead, face going pale._

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Artemis was facing away from the door, holding his left arm, shirtless. A yellow needle lay discarded next to him on the bed.

But none of these was what startled Holly the most. It was Artemis's skin that scared her. His back and arms were covered in deep purple, angry bruises, as though Artemis had got into a fight, which of course, he hadn't.

He was also far to thin, anorexic so. Holly just blinked.

"Arty?" He spun around.

"Holly!" He gasped, backing up a step. He grabbed for his shirt.

Holly entered the room. "What happened to your back?"

"Nothing, Holly. You shouldn't be here. Please leave."

"Nothing doesn't cause bruises. Tell me what happened."

"I fell." He snapped.

"You lie." She whispered.

"What of it. Mind your own business." She stepped closer, putting her hands on his shoulders, forcing his eyes to meet hers.

"Tell me." She said, the mesmer in her voice. Artemis quailed.

"No." He whispered.

Before another attempt could be made, Holly noticed Artemis's left shoulder. Or rather, the horridly vividly purple marring on his flesh, much more prominent than any others on his body. She let go of him, tracing it with her finger.

"Artemis… tell me. Please."

His eyes dulled in defeat. "I have… acute Leukemia." He would not look at her.

She took a step back. "You… what?"

"A form of cancer, Holly." Fairies didn't get cancers or tumors.

"But, you… how?"

"I've had it since I was two years old." He admitted.

"The nosebleeds, the bruises?"

"Side effects of the disease. I bruise and bleed easily."

"But these…" She said, stepping forward and touching the bruise on his arm again. "They cant be from one little knock."

"Holly, I cant tell you…"

"Why? I can –" her face turned white, and she stepped away from him. "It was me, wasn't it." She whispered, horrified.

He turned to look at her, worried. "No, Holly. It's all right. It isn't-"

"It was me. Wasn't it? I was punching you. My Frond-damned stupid habit. Frond, Artemis, I'm sorry." She fled the room.

"Holly!" He cried. But by the time he got outside, she had gone.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

She ran, out of the pod, out of the cave, out into the rainy Spanish air. She didn't care that the raindrops pounded on her head, or that the temperature was dropping rapidly. She didn't care that she was soaked to the bone.

All she cared about was that Artemis had once again been keeping a secret from her.

But this time, It wasn't hurting someone else, It was hurting him. And she had caused him pain. From the little she knew about cancers, they always killed if untreated. Artemis didn't look at all healthy.

She was huddled up against a rock, rain dripping down her cheeks, into her shirt, all over her. How could she go back? Everything was happening so fast. She had been, once again, declared a fugitive by her own people, and the only mud boy she had to help her was ill. Very much so.

"Why me." She moaned. "Why cant it be someone else."

Naturally, no one answered. Far off in the distance, she could hear Artemis calling her name. She didn't care. She didn't answer, and she felt selfish for it. Artemis would have to get soaked looking for her. What kind of Captain was she? Huddling in the rain.

One with no home. No friends.

She stayed there for an hour, two hours. She didn't know. Raindrops fell like De ja vu, and the only company she had was her own thoughts, and those she was trying to suppress.

She still hadn't moved by the time small, warm arms wrapped around her. They held her for a few minutes, a warm cheek pressed against her forehead. Holly didn't move, she knew who it was.

An arm was linked under her legs, the other fastened around her waist. With surprising strength for one so frail, Holly was lifted into the air. She let her head fall onto his warm neck, being carried all the way back towards the cave.

The rain stopped, meaning they had entered the cavern. She felt the door push open, but she didn't move.

She felt herself being lowered gently to the floor, but still she didn't move.

She heard Artemis leave quietly, then come back. But still, she didn't move.

She felt her jacket being removed, and her heavily soaked pants. But she still did not move.

She lay there in her short shorts and tee shirt in the freezing cold, but still she did not move.

She felt a towel sponge her down gently, removing the water from her skin, and, she still did not move.

A blanket was wrapped around her, a pillow put under her head, and she still did not move.

She felt warm. So, very warm. And she…. Still did… did not…move…

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Holly awoke gradually, slipping into a conscious state slowly. She felt, disorientated. What had happened?

She remembered with a start, eyes flying open. Where was she? She was in the living room, wrapped in blankets. Too many blankets. She looked down. There were two. One was hers, one was Arty's. He didn't…

He did.

She went to find him. She felt ashamed about what she had done. Ashamed, that Artemis hadn't trusted her enough to tell her. Ashamed that he still tried so hard to be her friend, looking after her.

He was in his room, lying on his mattress. No blankets covered him, and he was curled up. She tiptoed inside, laying the blankets on him.

She glanced down at his face. He was frowning again. She lightly touched his cheek, feeling heat from it, he had a fever. With a jolt she thought he may be sick from being out in the weather.

She left his room. There was someone she needed to talk to,"

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

"Hey Holly. How goes everything? Have you seen what Sool is trying to say now? Someone has got to see through these lies."

"Foaly." She said sadly.

"Holly, what's wrong?"

"Artemis… he…. He says he's… sick."

Foaly frowned. Her tone more than suggested it was a cold. "As in what?"

"Leukemia."

Foaly's eyes widened. He sat back in his horse chair. "Are you… positive?"

"He has bruises, Foaly. He's gotten several nose bleeds too. He's awfully thin."

He thought for a moment, then started typing. He paused, reading.

"They're the symptoms of acute Leukemia."

"Yes, he said that."

"Sudden nosebleeds, easily bruised or bleeding, tiredness, weight loss, fever. Artemis had any of those?"

She nodded. "All of them."

"Acute Leukemia is fatal within weeks or months if it is left untreated. How long do you think he's had it for?"

"Weeks!" Exclaimed Holly, gripping the chair. "He said he's had it since he was two!"

"Two? He's obviously been treated, but relapsed. Probably several times." He stopped. "Acute leukemia is very painful to have. I'm talking agony. He hasn't seemed in pain to you has he?"

Holly shook her head. "No. He doesn't eat too much though."

Foaly nodded. "Leukemia sometimes causes internal bleeding, especially in the stomach. That would hurt, a lot. Low tolerance of food and what not. Sufferers don't like exercise too much either, because it causes a lot of pain."

Holly sat back. "This is so absurd! We could see all the symptoms before! How thin he was, pale, everything! Why didn't we see it?"

Foaly shrugged. "We just thought he was a lazy little mud whelp."

Holly nodded. "It doesn't seem possible. He just… Artemis Fowl, does not survive trolls, homicidal pixies, death threats, the lot, only to be bested by his own body!"

"I know Holly. But there is not much we can do."

"What _can _we do?"

"Not much. Acute Leukemia can't be treated by magic, because technically nothing is broken, or injured. Fairy magic just isn't designed to remove abnormal white blood cells. He should be dead. Not many children get this disease, especially at age two. If the disease didn't kill him, the pain should have."

"Pain?"

"Acute Leukemia causes intense pain, in all areas of the body, all the time. Constant reflexatory muscle contractions can result in tearing of stomach tissue, causing internal bleeding."

"So you mean all this time, all these years, He's been in agony, 24/7?"

"Exactly."

"Wow. He has one hell of a straight face."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Holly finished her conversation with Foaly, and went to have some coffee. She had a lot to think over.

Half way through the mug, Artemis entered.

Stirring her drink, and without looking up, she said;

"Artemis, we need to talk."

He nodded, and sat down across from her.

She glanced up. "Arent you hungry?"

He shook his head. "No."

She sighed. Placing the mug on the table. "I'm sorry."

He frowned. "Why?"

"I went to pieces last night. I… Just… everything is just happening so damn fast. And I'm so sorry for hurt-"

She was cut off because a finer had been placed across her lips. Surprised, she looked up.

"Holly," He said firmly. "It was absolutely not your fault. Do you understand me? You are not to blame yourself in any way."

She nodded reluctantly, without conviction. Artemis retracted his finger.

Holly remembered something. "The needle, what was it?"

He absent mindedly fingered his arm where she knew the needle scars were. "It's methadone, a pain killer."

"Oh." She said lamely. "Look, Artemis, If you don't trust me enough to let me ask you these questions, you don't have too-"

"What?" He asked sharply.

"I just said that-"

"No, you think I don't trust you enough?" He shook his head, standing.

Holly was surprised. He went over, behind her, and did the most absurdly un- Artemis like thing ever.

He hugged her.

"I'm terribly sorry If I made you feel like that, Holly." He said, still holding her. "But I must correct you, I trust you more than almost anyone."

She laughed dryly, "More than yourself?"

"More than myself." He agreed softly. Holly didn't know what to say. He let her go, moving in front of her again.

"If it makes you feel any better, I will tell you everything from now on."

"Everything?"

He paused. "There is one thing I would rather keep to myself, for now, but yes. Absolutely everything."

"Alright then. Tell me."

"Tell you what?" He asked, sitting back down.

"Foaly said Leukemia can kill within weeks or months, so unless you are under three years old, what happened?"

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "My parents, when I was diagnosed, immediately insisted on getting treatment. It took months, but by my third birthday, I was completely cured."

"But two years later, I had a relapse. I underwent treatment again. It took longer, but again, by the time I was five, the cancer had gone."

"Let me guess, you relapsed again."

He nodded tiredly. "Yes. It was just after I turned eleven, so very soon after you met the younger me in the search for the Lemur ( MINOR TP SPOILER). But eventually, it got cured, right before we went to Hybras."

"And you had another relapse?" Asked a startled Holly.

"Yes. A year ago, it came back."

"And so you're still undergoing treatment."

He shifted in his seat. "No."

"What do you mean?"

He shook his head.

"You promised to tell me everything, Artemis, so tell me, why aren't you getting treatment?"

He sighed. "Because I asked not to."

Holly was stunned. (Again! Poor elf. One day she's going to stay stunned.) "You… asked not to? Why?"

"Because I don't want to. It will just come back, Holly. And you have no idea, how…how _painful _the treatment is."

"So you're just… giving up?"

"Yes."

"Why!" She exclaimed, exploding from her chair. "You didn't survive all this to die! When were you going to tell your friends? When were you going to tell me? Were you going to have Butler pass on the message at your funeral? 'Hey, Holly. Artemis is dying of cancer. He told me to tell you that when he DIED!'"

"Holly! Please! I was planning on telling you!"

"When, Artemis? When? Were you going to tell me on your deathbed? How long do you have to live? Weeks? Days? We could have helped you! We could have-"

"HOLLY!" He yelled. "Be quiet!" He sank back into his chair wearily, holding his head.

Holly took a step back. "Did I… hurt you?"

He shook his head, still in his hands. Holly went forward, placing a hand on his forehead. A few blue sparks trailed the length of her arm, sinking into his head. He shuddered, and his tensed body relaxed. He looked up.

"Thank you." He gasped. He looked her in the eye. "Holly, I didn't want to hurt you. But I most certainly didn't want to be treated like a baby. What would you have done if you knew I was ill when you had a crisis threatening to destroy the people? I can help, Holly, and I will."

"I'm sorry, Artemis. Everything is just…happening. Just when I think I've fixed everything, Sool pops up and makes me the fugitive who killed Julius again. And to think everyone is considering the fact that all that we've done is just some stupid coverup…" She broke off, shaking her head.

Warm arms encircled her. "I know Holly. And just to add another sorry to the list, I apologize with burdening my troubles onto you."

She buried her face in his shoulder, shaking her head. "Its not your fault."

A grim smile touched his face. "It never is. I am sorry to be a mood breaker, but we have a crisis at hand, and I believe there is something you need to show me."

Holly just realized they had wasted a whole day. "Yes, she said jumping to her feet. Frond, your right."

"Lets get to work."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

That night, after watching numerous news feeds, sorting hundreds of files, and discussing endlessly with Foaly, Holly sat at the computer, eyes drooping. They had found barely anything to defend their case. Sool was certainly doing a good job of hiding evidence against him. All their leads had turned up empty.

Glancing over at Artemis, Holly found him snoozing gently, head leaning against the desk. She smiled.

The elf got up, easily lifting Artemis's thin frame. She carried Artemis to his room, laying him down on his mattress. He didn't even stir.

Holly tucked him in, and looked down at his pale face. She would never tell him, but she felt warm and safe when he hugged her.

She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.

Oh great. She thought. It seems Artemis's elf kissing days aren't over (MINITURE TP SPOILER).

She wrapped the blankets around him firmly, tucking them around him.

Time for me to sleep as well, she thought, rubbing her eyes.

She left the room, shutting the door with a snap.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

Holly was sitting in the kitchen at a quarter past nine. She never woke up this late, but she had worked so late last night, she had allowed herself to sleep in. Artemis was still asleep.

At ten o'clock, Holly became a little worried. He never slept in this late, no matter what. She did something she wouldn't have done if she hadn't of known he was sick –although she would never admit it – and went to check on him.

He was curled up in his blankets, head lying against the mattress rather than on the pillow. A quick examination found he had a high fever. She placed her hand on his head, gently probing into his mind.

"Ah!" She gasped, falling back slightly. His mind had been filled with pain. She cradled her skull in her hands.

"Holly?" A soft hand touched her forehead.

She glanced up. Artemis was inches away.

"Sorry." She gasped. "Something was wrong." It was then she noticed he was trembling.

"Lie down." She commanded him. He looked at her questioningly.

"I beg your par-" He was pushed gently back onto the bed, Holly's hand on his head.

"What's wrong, Artemis?" She asked softly.

He shook his head. "Nothing." He tried to brush her hand away.

"Is this nothing?" She asked, holding a slim finger in front of his face. On it was a drop of blood. Artemis reached up and touched his face.

"My nose?" He asked. She nodded.

Artemis sighed.

"Tell me what is hurting." She asked.

He didn't say anything, then "my chest."

She wormed her fingers under his shirt, resting them lightly on his chest. He shuddered slightly under her touch, her fingers must have seemed cold compared to his high temperature.

Once again, blue sparks lolled lazily down her arm, spreading across his chest.

Artemis sighed, relaxing, and Holly stroked his forehead. He was to relieved to pass a comment.

"Stay in bed. Do you want anything?"

"Yes," he said, looking at her. "To get out of bed."

"Well you're not. No chance."

His face darkened. "Holly, I don't want to be treated like a child. I can look after myself."

"Not now you can." She retorted. "Stay in bed today. Even better, I'll bring your laptop in here, and we can do the search here. But you are not leaving this bed."

He knew it was pointless to argue. "Fine." He agreed wearily, sinking back onto the pillow.

"I'll get you something to drink, you haven't eaten for two days. Perhaps we shall find something on Sool today."

"Yes," he agreed. "Perhaps we shall."

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

When Holly returned, he was fast asleep. Smiling, she sat down beside him, booting up the computer. This was going to be another long day.

**Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz**

What did you think? Come on, review! I slaved over this story for an HOUR! Or two. Time flies when you're writing! I thought that maybe it was all happening a bit too fast, and maybe I sped their relationship up a little, but he IS sick. My fave part was Holly and Arty hugging in the rain. LOL!

REVIEW! AlinaAnila


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